Health Insurance

What is Health/Medical Insurance?

The cost involved in health care today is extremely high and continuously increasing, which is where health/medical insurance becomes important.
Medical emergencies can happen at any moment, and besides the impact on one’s health, these emergencies can have a major impact on the financial standings of an individual or a family. Medical insurance covers the financial loss during emergencies (or even non emergencies) and when a person gets sick.
Health/Medical insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses whether it is individuals or corporations that are paying for the medical insurance expenses. It is the coverage that provides the payments of benefits as a result of sickness or injury.

How does Health/Medical Insurance work?

Different types of insurance providers exist. There are local (UAE) providers and international providers such as BUPA, AETNA, and Now Health among others, which UAE residents can enroll in.

Naturally, differences exist between local providers and international providers;

International providers offer a high degree of coverage in terms of:

the sum insured (total insurance amount)

the annual limit

they may offer more benefits and more extensive coverage (i.e. cancer care)

Global coverage

Streamlined, simple and effective reimbursement procedures

Local providers provide the needed coverage and do a good job at it. Variations also exist within local providers depending on the coverage plan a person opted for.

When it comes to Dubai, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) mandates the minimum requirements for medical insurance for Dubai residents. All insurance companies have to be DHA compliant and the requirements include:

A minimum of AED150,000 per year of coverage

Mandatory maternity coverage

Declared pre-existing conditions are covered

No age limit when issuing a policy. Historically, insurers could have declined providing coverage after a certain age.

Why would you need Health/Medical Insurance?

Health Insurance provides a wide range of benefits to its subscribers, those include:

Coverage for inpatient (when one has to stay at a hospital) and day-patient treatment in a hospital

Coverage for outpatient visits (when you visit to a clinic) or a hospital

Maternity coverage – there are several levels of maternity care that can be provided and it’s up to the person to choose which type of coverage suits them best (however there is a minimum amount that has to be provided for Dubai according to DHA)

Organ transplants can be covered

Cancer treatment can be provided

Cover for newborn babies is available

Reconstructive surgery can be covered if needed

Rehabilitation expenses can be covered

Emergency dental services

Inpatient psychiatric treatmentcan be offered

Terminal illness – palliative and hospice care

Evacuation and repatriation services

Alternative therapy if needed

There are many details to Health Insurance and it’s important to clarify these details and get specifics of what you are buying into before deciding on what to enroll in.

One will have to read through the summary benefits and the terms & conditions of a policy in order to fully understand its details. It is critical to find an insurance broker that is ready to provide you with the clarity you need, and this is where Petra Insurance Brokers comes in. We provide the clarity that you desire in order to make the right decision and we have been doing it in the UAE since the 1960s.

About Petra

Petra Insurance Brokers LLC is a company incorporated and existing under the laws of the United Arab Emirates holding UAE Insurance Authority broker license number 147